--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Think about your favourite work and your…" description: "\"“Think about your favourite work and your creative heroes. What did they miss? What didn't they make? What could've been made better? If they were stil..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b5/austin-kleon-1835_austin-kleon_think-about-your-favourite-work-and-your_705093.jpg" --- # Think about your favourite work and your creative heroes… ![“Think about your favourite work and your creative heroes. What did they miss? What didn't they make? What could've been made better? If they were still alive, what would they be making today? If all your favourite makers got together and collaborated, what would they make with you leading the crew?” quote by Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b5/austin-kleon-1835_austin-kleon_think-about-your-favourite-work-and-your_705093.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b5/austin-kleon-1835_austin-kleon_think-about-your-favourite-work-and-your_705093.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b5/austin-kleon-1835_austin-kleon_think-about-your-favourite-work-and-your_705093.jpg) > ““Think about your favourite work and your creative heroes. What did they miss? What didn't they make? What could've been made better? If they were still alive, what would they be making today? If all your favourite makers got together and collaborated, what would they make with you leading the crew?”” [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Reflect on gaps in admired creators’ work and imagine collaborative possibilities with you leading. **In simple terms:** Identify missed opportunities and envision joint creation. Key Takeaway Explore new collaborations based on past works. Themes creativity collaboration reflection inspiration Mood inspirational playful Type creative motivational When to use this quote - brainstorming sessions - creative workshops - project planning Key Concepts creative gaps team dynamics visionary thinking Questions to Reflect On - What unique strengths would you bring to such a team? - How can you realistically integrate their legacy? A Different Perspective Idealizing past creators may overlook practical constraints. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alive Making](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive-making-5574519/) [Austin-kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/austin-kleon/) [Collaborated Make](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/collaborated-make-5574516/) [Creative Heroes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creative-heroes-5574518/) [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Favourite Makers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/favourite-makers-5574515/) [Makers Got](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/makers-got-5574517/) [Steal-like-an-artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/steal-like-an-artist/) ## Related quotes > [You're gonna die. You're gonna die. And nobody's gonna care which version of the iPhone you used to make something on Twitter, or to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/merlin-mann/you-re-gonna-die-you-re-gonna-die-and-nobody-s-gonna-care-which/) [Merlin Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/merlin-mann/) > [“Writing a page a day doesn't seem like much, but do it for 365 days and you have enough to fill a novel.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/writing-a-page-a-day-doesn-t-seem-like-much-but-do-it-for-365-days/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“The computer brings out the uptight perfectionist in us- we start editing ideas before we have them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/the-computer-brings-out-the-uptight-perfectionist-in-us-we-start/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [ “In the meantime, if you're not into the world you live in, you can build your own world around you.\[...\]Surround yourself with books and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/in-the-meantime-if-you-re-not-into-the-world-you-live-in-you-can/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [You're ready. Start making stuff.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/you-re-ready-start-making-stuff/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“You have to dress for the job you want, not the job you have, and you have to start doing the work you want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/you-have-to-dress-for-the-job-you-want-not-the-job-you-have-and-you/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [Do good work and share it with people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/do-good-work-and-share-it-with-people/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“The best advice is not to write what you know, it's to write what you like. Write the kind of story you like best-…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/the-best-advice-is-not-to-write-what-you-know-it-s-to-write-what-you/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“If you have two or three real passions, don't feel like you have to pick and choose between them. Don't discard. Keep all your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/if-you-have-two-or-three-real-passions-don-t-feel-like-you-have-to/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“In the first act, you get your hero up a tree. The second act, you throw rocks at him. For the third act, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/in-the-first-act-you-get-your-hero-up-a-tree-the-second-act-you-throw/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Nobody is born with a style or a voice. We don't come out of the womb knowing who we are. In the beginning, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/nobody-is-born-with-a-style-or-a-voice-we-don-t-come-out-of-the-womb/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Don't just steal the style, steal the thinking behind the style. You don't want to look like your heroes, you want to see like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/don-t-just-steal-the-style-steal-the-thinking-behind-the-style-you/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) ## More by Austin Kleon > [“The thing is, you can cut off a couple passions and only focus on one, but after a while, you’ll start to feel phantom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/the-thing-is-you-can-cut-off-a-couple-passions-and-only-focus-on-one/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [Don't think of your website as a self-promotion machine, think of it as a self-invention machine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/don-t-think-of-your-website-as-a-self-promotion-machine-think-of-it/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“We want you to take from us. We want you, at first, to steal from us, because you can’t steal. You will take what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/we-want-you-to-take-from-us-we-want-you-at-first-to-steal-from-us/) [austin kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Validation is for parking.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/validation-is-for-parking/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“If you want fans, you have to be a fan first. If you want to be accepted by a community, you have to first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/if-you-want-fans-you-have-to-be-a-fan-first-if-you-want-to-be/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Social media sites are the perfect place to share daily updates. Don’t worry about being on every platform; pick and choose based on what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/social-media-sites-are-the-perfect-place-to-share-daily-updates-don-t/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Writing a page a day doesn't seem like much, but do it for 365 days and you have enough to fill a novel.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/writing-a-page-a-day-doesn-t-seem-like-much-but-do-it-for-365-days/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [Be boring. (It’s the only way to get work done.)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/be-boring-it-s-the-only-way-to-get-work-done/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [It sounds a little extreme, but in this day and age, if your work isn't online, it doesn't exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/it-sounds-a-little-extreme-but-in-this-day-and-age-if-your-work-isn-t/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Don't wait until you know who you are to get started. If I'd waited to know who I was or what I was about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/don-t-wait-until-you-know-who-you-are-to-get-started-if-i-d-waited-to/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [Your brain gets too comfortable in your everyday surroundings. You need to make it uncomfortable. You need to spend some time in another land,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/your-brain-gets-too-comfortable-in-your-everyday-surroundings-you/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [Nothing is more paralyzing than the idea of limitless possibilities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/nothing-is-more-paralyzing-than-the-idea-of-limitless-possibilities/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Whenever Picasso learned how to do something, he abandoned it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/whenever-picasso-learned-how-to-do-something-he-abandoned-it/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“The writer Jonathan Lethem has said that when people call something “original,” nine out of ten times they just don’t know the references or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/the-writer-jonathan-lethem-has-said-that-when-people-call-something/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Stock and flow” is an economic concept that writer Robin Sloan has adapted into a metaphor for media: “Flow is the feed. It’s the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/stock-and-flow-is-an-economic-concept-that-writer-robin-sloan-has/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) [Explore all 204 Austin Kleon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) ## More Austin-kleon quotes > [“Writing a page a day doesn't seem like much, but do it for 365 days and you have enough to fill a novel.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/writing-a-page-a-day-doesn-t-seem-like-much-but-do-it-for-365-days/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Human beings want to know where things came from, how they were made, and who made them. The stories you tell about the work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/human-beings-want-to-know-where-things-came-from-how-they-were-made/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Nobody is born with a style or a voice. We don't come out of the womb knowing who we are. In the beginning, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/nobody-is-born-with-a-style-or-a-voice-we-don-t-come-out-of-the-womb/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“In the first act, you get your hero up a tree. The second act, you throw rocks at him. For the third act, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/in-the-first-act-you-get-your-hero-up-a-tree-the-second-act-you-throw/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“The trouble with imaginative people is that we're good at picturing the worst that could happen to us. Fear is often just the imagination…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/the-trouble-with-imaginative-people-is-that-we-re-good-at-picturing/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“If you have two or three real passions, don't feel like you have to pick and choose between them. Don't discard. Keep all your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/if-you-have-two-or-three-real-passions-don-t-feel-like-you-have-to/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“When you get rid of old material, you push yourself further and come up with something better.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/when-you-get-rid-of-old-material-you-push-yourself-further-and-come/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [Do good work and share it with people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/do-good-work-and-share-it-with-people/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“You have to dress for the job you want, not the job you have, and you have to start doing the work you want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/you-have-to-dress-for-the-job-you-want-not-the-job-you-have-and-you/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“If you look to artists who've managed to achieve lifelong careers, you detect the same pattern: They all have been able to persevere, regardless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/if-you-look-to-artists-who-ve-managed-to-achieve-lifelong-careers-you/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [You're ready. Start making stuff.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/you-re-ready-start-making-stuff/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Be ambitious. Keep yourself busy. Think bigger. Expand your audience. Don't hobble yourself in the name of "keeping it real," or "not selling out."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/be-ambitious-keep-yourself-busy-think-bigger-expand-your-audience-don/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Don't talk to people you don't want to talk to, and don't talk about stuff you don't want to talk about.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/don-t-talk-to-people-you-don-t-want-to-talk-to-and-don-t-talk-about/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [ “In the meantime, if you're not into the world you live in, you can build your own world around you.\[...\]Surround yourself with books and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/in-the-meantime-if-you-re-not-into-the-world-you-live-in-you-can/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“We all love things that other people think are garbage. You have to have the courage to keep loving your garbage, because what makes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/we-all-love-things-that-other-people-think-are-garbage-you-have-to/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) [Browse all 22 Austin-kleon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/austin-kleon/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Think about your favourite work and your creative heroes. What did they miss? What didn't they make? What could've been made better? If they were still alive, what would they be making today? 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